1984 - George Orwell Wikia
Welcome to the 1984 Wikia 1984 is a novel written by George Orwell and it talks about a dystopian society with the main protagonist being Winston Smith. Winston has rebellious thoughts against the Party which is the government that controls the society led by an infamous figure, Big Brother. No one really knows what Big Brother looks like but propaganda of him are seen everywhere in the state of Oceania where Winston lives. Throughout the course of the novel, Winston explains life living under a totalitarian society and the struggles. He encounters Julia, a Party member who share similar thoughts against the Party and together they share a life together with their secret meetings until they eventually meet their downfall. Big Brother's Ideals Big Brother is portrayed as the authority figure and the individual with the power over the Party. He is the leader and feared by the society because if one did not follow his ideals, they would be captured by the thoughtpolice and be sent to the Inner Party to be tortured. This is accomplished by the lack of privacy that every citizen has due to the telescreens implemented in every household and microphones on every street corner. "BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU"(Orwell, 4). Propaganda with this quote is seen everywhere in the state of Oceania to invoke fear for individuals and act as a reminder that they're always being watched. Due to Big Brother's ideals, the Party enforces rules that causes members of the society to feel oppressed. These ways that Party members live showcase the theme "Oppression" and "Consequences due to Totalitarianism". "A Party member lives from birth to death under the eye of the Thought Police. Even when he is alone he can never be sure that he is alone. Whenever he may be alseep, or awake, working or resting, in his bath or in bed, he can be inspected without warning and without knowing that he is being inspected"(Orwell, 219). This quotation is expressed by a member of the Party that has rebellious thoughts because he disagrees with the ideals. The quotation also shows that Big Brother does not care about the privacy of the public and will keep watch of everyone to make sure everything is in order. Big Brother is able to easily influence the public to accept his ideals because of the required Two Minute Hate periods that happened daily. If an individual did not show up to these periods, they would become suspicious and be watched closer by the law enforces of Oceania. "In its second minute the Hate rose to a frenzy. People were leaping up and down in their places and shouting at the tops of their voices in an effort to drown the maddening bleating voice that came from the screen"(Orwell, 16). The Hate periods organized everyday act as a reminder to the Party members that Big Brother's ideals are right and if they did not abide to the rules, they would be captured. The screen showed the villains of the Party, the people that rebelled against Big Brother which fuels the Hate and the anger that the crowd produces. More info on Big Brother can be found in the History of Big Brother tab. Do not follow Big Brother's ideals After learning more about Big Brother, you should realize that his ideals are not correct and should not be implemented to today's current society. Big Brother is not a fair leader and he does not take into account everyone's opinions. He is a leader that abuses his power to oppress society and in turn, control them. Reasons why one should not accept Big Brother's ideals. * 'Invasion of Privacy - '"There was of course no way of knowing whether you were being watched at any given moment. How often, or on what system, the Thought Police plugged in on any individual wire was guesswork. It was even conceivable that they watched everybody all the time"(Orwell, 4) You would be watched constantly due to all the technology that the Party members have set up to watch for criminals. * 'You'll never know the truth - '''Due to the rule of having Big Brother's words always being right, the Party is required to alter the past, present, and eventually the future to match the exact words of Big Brother to show that he is almighty. * '''You're not allowed to love another/be in a relationship - '"We have cut the links between child and parent, and between man and man, and between man and woman. No one dares trust a wife or a child or a friend any longer... The sex instinct will be eradicated"(Orwell, 280) Relationships are forbidden by Big Brother's ideals because he feels that the energy used in relationships could rather be used in order to help enforce his rules. People are not allowed to have a relationship and Big Brother has broken the trust and bonds between every person so that one can only trust themselves. * 'You're not allowed to have the freedom to think your own thoughts - '"Doublethink means the power of holding two two contradictory beliefs in one's mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them"(Orwell, 214) This quotation said by Winston, proves that an individual will have their own thoughts but they are also fed lies from Big Brother but even though they are lies, they have to accept it or they would be captured by the Thought Police. Recent Activity Category:Browse